Bollywood storyline, desi storyboard…can Detective Dotson be India’s first global video game hit?

In Detective Dotson, one plays the lead character, Dotson, who never wanted to be a detective. Instead, he aspired to be a star despite being a bad actor. However, following in his father’s footsteps, Dotson becomes a detective. He is accompanied by journalist Johnson, nicknamed JJ, who is a strong, independent woman who has feelings for Dotson. Another significant character in the storyline and the game is Inspector Durai, an over-the-top cop often seen in movies. Both Johnson and Durai support Dotson and help him solve mysteries.

“There are a lot of great detective Bollywood movies and TV shows, from Karamchand and Byomkesh Bakshi to OK Computer. However, when I watched Bollywood films or shows, I wondered why they were not being shown to the whole world. From day one, the approach behind Detective Dotson was to create a game that could be consumed by the entire world—a story we could bring from India and export globally,” Shodhan responds when asked if the character sketch of Dotson was based on a popular actor who played a detective in a Bollywood movie or TV show.

Shalin Shodhan (in blue), director of Ahmedabad-based Masala Games, discusses the development of Detective Dotson, focusing on bringing cultural elements into the game while maintaining global appeal. (Express Image)

“He [Dotson] has so much potential, and we really want to cheer him on and see him succeed. But, of course, he’s not there yet,” says Shodhan, describing Dotson as funny and lovable, emphasising that you empathise with him and feel sorry for him. “Dotson has given a lot of auditions for movies and has gotten really good at changing costumes. So his secret superpower is disguise,” he says, adding that Dotson might also be playing the role of a detective in real life.

“He [Dotson] has not given up on Bollywood at all; he still believes that he could land a role. His dad, who was a great detective, has been killed, and nobody knows what happened. It’s almost as if he has to take on the role of a detective to find out who killed his father. The biggest role of his life has now been thrust upon him at the worst possible time, and he has to rise to the occasion, fill those shoes, and actually figure out how to be a detective,” Shodhan explains, delving into the background story of how Dotson became a detective.

Bringing in elements of India

Shodhan says Detective Dotson has borrowed elements from Mumbai, where the Hindi film industry—popularly called Bollywood—has become the best-known of India’s production centres. However, the game’s storyline is not set in Mumbai. Shodhan explains that the game is divided into four sections: one features a ghat and a river, another is a park section, a third is a city section that includes elements from Mumbai, and a fourth section features characters from a small city. The game is laid out horizontally, with each section having its depth.

“We went to Mumbai and did photography. We had a photographer in Kota who roamed around a few neighbourhoods and took some photographs. We want to mix all of it. I think that is the essence of India—anywhere you go here, you will find the most advanced, fanciest things right next to something almost primitive. It makes you wonder how these two things can exist in the same frame, and to me, that is what is unique about India and its landscape,” says Shodhan.

The game will be playable in both Hindi and English. However, Shodhan says that in the future, he is interested in adding a hyper-local feature or some form of a profanity pack, where characters could speak slang in local languages.

Characters from Detective Dotson participate in a traditional Indian wedding procession, highlighting the game’s vibrant and culturally rich settings. (Image: Masala Games)

When Detective Dotson launches, gamers can expect a total gameplay duration of 5 hours. However, on Xbox, there will be a co-op mode that allows players to choose between playing as Dotson and Johnson, Dotson and Durai, or both at the same time. The co-op mode will extend the gameplay by an additional two and a half hours. The co-op mode will be added to the PC version as a free update.

Over a year of work

“We prototyped a bunch of different games and ideas and we greenlit Detective Dotson two years ago,” recalls Shodhan. “The game has evolved. The initial idea was to create a visual puzzle, and while that game was good, we realised it could be improved by adding characters and storylines, making it deeper, and incorporating cultural elements,” he says. Work on the game began over a year ago and Shodhan is targeting a mid-2025 release for Detective Dotson.

Shodhan says he and the team experimented with a unique style to set the casual adventure and build the world around the characters. “It’s not what you might expect. Detective Dotson has the benefits of a 2D game but the appearance of a 3D game, with 2D characters,” he explains.

“Our style is that the environment of India is realistic and 3D but the characters are pixel art and 2D. The thing is, India is a crowded place, and if you are using fully animated 3D characters, it is going to be very difficult to do it well. However, if we want the audience to really like these characters and find them cute and endearing, pixel art is a great way to achieve that,” he explains, noting how pixel art adds a magical touch to the game.

A scene from Detective Dotson showcasing the protagonist, Dotson, investigating a mystery in a moonlit Indian village, blending the game’s unique pixel art style with a 3D environment. (Image: Masala Games)

“We did a simple experiment where we took a photograph and placed a pixel character coming out of it,” he continues. “We liked it so much that we decided to go with this style. We have not seen this style much elsewhere, and it really works for us—where the environment is realistic and the characters are pixelated.”

The background music for the game is composed by Nikhil Rao, the lead guitarist of the popular band Indian Ocean and Shodhan’s childhood friend. Shodhan, himself a keen musical ear, is working with Rao and Sharad Joshi on creating the soundtrack for the game.

The Indian gaming scene is maturing

Shodhan has observed a change in video game development in India since he returned to the country a decade ago. “I see maturity in the new wave of developers. People are taking risky gambits that otherwise would not have been attempted. They are exploring new concepts and pursuing what they believe in, rather than just looking at what has succeeded in the market. To me, that is the most encouraging thing because it’s how we will stand out and build an identity for Indian gaming,” he says.

India might have a large gamer base, especially on mobile, but despite having immense talent and local stories waiting to go global, the country has not yet experienced a massive gaming breakthrough. However, there has been a gradual rise in story-driven games developed by small developers in India that are catching the attention of the Western market, especially renowned gaming studios.

“I see that the ingredients are there for a breakout. Hopefully, we can be one of those breakout success stories,” Shodhan says, advocating for a story that is rooted in Indian culture but has global resonance. “It comes down to taking a bit of risk and investing in something bold and scary because you believe in it, rather than just investing in a formula that others have proven to be successful.”

India on the global gaming map?

Shodhan believes a good casual game with a deeply rooted storyline and great characters has a chance to go global and, if done right, can put India on the global map of video games.

“It is not that AAA is the only source of great games. Even one person in their bedroom with a great idea could make a great game because, ultimately, complexity is not necessary for fun,” he says. Shodhan’s Masala Games is a recipient of a grant from Xbox, which is part of their Developer Acceleration Programme.

Shodhan says he is developing Detective Dotson as well as an animated series simultaneously. “About two years ago, Unreal Engine became so good at outputting cinema-level images from game assets. We wanted to fully take advantage of that and tell our stories both in a narrative, cinema-like format and in a game where you are actively playing through the stories,” he says.

Although Shodhan’s game studio is still in the services business, the team is putting a major focus on Detective Dotson as a test bed for local stories that travel the world through video games. “As game developers, we should have our ear to the ground and listen to the audiences that are not speaking that much but represent a huge opportunity,” he says.